Da Sweet Blood of Jesusis an independent romantic horror comedy directed by Spike Lee, who says the film is about human beings who are addicted to blood. Funny, sexy and bloody. A new kind of love storyBecause of the film's low budget, it was completed in only 16 days. It was filmed in Martha's Vineyard and in New York City and is currently in post-production.

Lee confirmed that director Steven Soderbergh contributed $10,000 to Lee's kickstarter fundraiser to get the film launched into production. The film, its cast and the script were closely guarded and were never made public until the films release.

The independent film appeared in selected cinemas throughout the US on June 22nd 2014

Review

The fate of Spike Lee's latest joint rested on the strength of his legacy. In August 2013, the filmmaker asked fans of to contribute to a $1.25 million Kickstarter campaign for a movie described as a “funny, sexy and bloody love story.” Lee exceeded his goal, raising $1.4 million to make whatever his heart desired — it just had to be verifiably him. What could have setup for indulgence amounts to Lee's fiercest film in a decade; Da Sweet Blood of Jesus is bloodthirsty, a sultry and strange portrait of addiction roaring with a wicked sense of humor. Messy and headstrong, Lee piles on ideas without sussing out the film's identity, but it's all provocative. The director said he needed Kickstarter to make this movie outside the business-first industry. He wasn't kidding.Da Sweet Blood of Jesus draws heavily from Bill Gunn's 1973 Blaxploitation horror film Ganja & Hess, a smoldering, shadowy response to '72's Blacula. Lee brings Gunn's film to the modern age with bright whites, hyper-crisp photography, and a biting sense of humor. The director's compositions are often as startling and engrossing as the character drama; If we're going to fall down a rabbit hole, Lee wants the plummet to mesmerize us.Dr. Hess Greene (Stephen Tyrone Williams) is a well-rounded elite: He's an Akan scholar, he's an art-lover, he has a taste for delectable food and fine wine, and he enjoys life from atop a perch in Martha's Vineyard, an exquisite mansion radiating across the Cape. The perfect life's thrown off balance after a tussle with a suicidal colleague leaves him impaled with an ancient Asante blade. He bleeds out. He dies. And then he wakes up, rejuvenated and hungry for blood. In a striking sequence, Hess discovers the body of his colleague bleeding out on the floor. He bends down and laps up the crimson liquid from its immaculate surroundings. Terrifying silliness.When the deceased's wife, Ganja Hightower (Zaraah Abrahams), descends upon Hess' home looking for her hubby, Da Sweet Blood of Jesus transitions into a stage play of sorts — LaBute by way of Kubrick. Like the dagger that imbued him with a hunger for blood, Ganja thrusts herself into Hess' heart, erupting sexual tension and power player dynamics. At first, Hess tries to hide his addiction — quenching his thirst with stolen hospital blood pouches before preying on impoverished women in Brooklyn projects. When the secret's out, he asks Ganja to join him in his immortal feast. Her addictive personality can't resist.What Lee's chasing is both crass and murky. Hess' addiction pervades his entire life. Though he's surrounded by upper crust plutocracy, the vampiric playboy still travels back to New York City to find women so far tucked into their own existences, the world may not notice they're gone. The wealthy literally prey on the marginalized. They're addicted to it. Hess' masculinity — his victims are specifically women — and religion play parts too. Early in the film, the secular-skewing scholar attends a church previously seen in Lee's Red Hook Summer. His relationship with God haunts the picture and as more of a question than on-the-nose thematic twist.Lee finds the perfect counterpart to Williams' subdued, introspective Patrick Bateman in Abrahams' forceful performance. As Ganja reveals in a spine-tingling monologue, she self-identifies as the product of familial bullying. She built a hard exterior to combat the men in her life. She became one of the boys (she later attacks women in the same fashion as Hess). Abrahams, a real discovery by Lee, can play rough while dipping her toes into comedy. Ganja has her own vices — red wine, marijuana, any form of luxury — and when left alone with Hess' butler (Rami Malek, who adds a nice splash of physical comedy to the mix), she goes full-on Devil Wears Prada.Lee's films are known for vibrant soundtracks, but Da Sweet Blood of Jesus is overstuffed. A potent piano score by Bruce Hornsby emphasizes the scares and the laughs with melodic elegance. Less effective is the soundtrack, a mix of pop songs, spirituals, and tunes from unsigned artists that Lee culled from the Internet. With already so much to chew on, the extra layer of frosting sends certain scenes into a sugar coma.Da Sweet Blood of Jesus' gorgeous photography and design intoxicate the mind. The only indulgences on screen are our own — the “wants” of the world that pave the way for addiction. With a manic attitude, Lee sticks his remake's nose into every aspect of culture. It could go further in one direction, push its characters dreams, complications, and sins to a more relevant degree. But then it might not be so fun. Da Sweet Blood of Jesus' is contemplative riot, a welcome walk on the wild side for Lee, and a movie that revels in raised eyebrows. The only indulgence of this Kickstarter-funded indie is laying everything on thick

THE VERDICT: Spike Lee takes a break from Hollywood to deliver Da Sweet Blood of Jesus, his most fiery film in a decade, at once hilarious, creepy, and thought-provoking.

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